Burkina Fasobyname Burkina, formerly Republic of Upper Volta, French République de Haute-Volta, landlocked state in western Africawith an area of 105,869 square miles (274,200 square kilometres). The country is bounded to the north and west by Mali, to the south by Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Togo, and to the east by Benin and Niger. The capital, Ouagadougou, is about 500 miles (800 kilometres) by road from the sea. A former French colony, it gained independence as Upper Volta in 1960; the name Burkina Faso was adopted in 1984.